Reviews

BibleWorks 6 continues to offer a topflight resource for
language-based study, leading the field in comparative translations
(93 versions in 29 different languages, including 12 original language
texts). The program comes out of the box with seven morphology
databases, ten lexicons and dictionaries (four Hebrew, six Greek), and
18 other reference works, all in a tightly integrated package that is
an ideal tool for missionaries and Bible translators.

In use, BibleWorks 6 offers a clean and customizable screen that is
impressive in its simplicity and lightning-fast display of
morphological information.

Users can choose between three interface modes ranging from a "beginner"
mode driven by menu buttons to a "power user" interface in which
one uses a few simple codes to facilitate quick entry of verses,
words, or even fairly complex searches. An advanced search utility
allows for more options and complexity than most users can imagine.

The basic BibleWorks screen displays the chosen text in as many
versions or translations as the user desires, while associated notes
are displayed in a window below and other informative verse and
morphology lists appear on the side. A particularly impressive utility
displays a pop-up box containing the original language root, meaning,
and parsing of each word with no more effort than resting the cursor
over it.

Other utilities new in BibleWorks 6 include a sentence diagramming
function, user-defined highlighting, and highlighted comparisons of
parallel texts. Language students can practice their vocabulary using
digital flash cards, or refresh their memory of Greek and Hebrew
paradigms with a single click of the mouse.

With a new Lexical/Grammatical Helps Window, the user can roll the
mouse over tagged text, immediately bringing up a color-coded list of
all available lexical and grammatical references, including the
introductory line from each reference. A quick click brings up the
complete article.

One nice feature of BibleWorks 6 is "Clone BibleWorks," a tool
that allows the user to open multiple windows in pursuit of tangents
inspired by other texts, then return easily to the previous screen.

BibleWorks 6 comes in a single version priced at $299.95, with a
limited number of additional resources available for unlocking at
extra cost. For example, the Bauer-Danker-Arndt-Gingrich Greek-English
Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature
and the Koehler-Baumgartner Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old
Testament are widely regarded as the standard and most up-to-date
works in their field. They are available for $125 and $159,
respectively, or $197 for a package including both (Logos offers the
resources separately, at similar prices).

For someone whose primary interest is original languages,
BibleWorks 6 is hard to beat.